The Hedge Druid

Posts Tagged ‘holy well’

In this third and final post on the Beltane trip I will reveal how I discovered the true meaning of the phrase “See with the hawk’s vision” – a phrase that had been given to me during my meditation beneath The Llangernyw Yew tree.

After Llangernyw we drove the twenty or so miles towards the north coast of Wales and soon were speeding along the main arterial road that feeds the northern holiday towns with their tourist lifeblood durkng the summer months. We passed Llandudno, then the junction for Conwy, through the short tunnels and out into the shadow of the hills above Penmaenmawr. This seemingly innocuous and insistinctive village is actually a gateway to one of the tightest agglomerations of cairns, circles and cromlechs anywhere in Wales.

Our destination on this May Day was The Druid’s Circle – a stone circle known to have a particular alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. or association with the energies of the Beltane time of year. We drove up the ridiculously steep hill, threading our way from the centre of the village in alternate left and right turns that were now well practised and instinctive despite the infrequent and late signage. If you plan to visit the stone circle for yourself then we recommend a good map, and a willingness to explore the housing estates above the village!

A beautiful view from Penmaenmawr Druid's Circle

On the top of the hills above Penmaenmawr the view was clear and beautiful. We had endured the harsh winds all the way up and now stood bullied by the winds as we drank in the views across to The Great Orme at Llandudno. F0r the first time we took an interest in some rocks that seemed to form an alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. with the small cairn circle that we previously named “The Little Druid”. There may not be any significance in this alignmentAlignment relates to the concept that humans have their own energy fields that are oriented or formed in a specific way such that the person is either suited better to one energy source of another. Some people have their energy fields empowered by the direct subtle energy force of The Sun, whilst others are empowered by the indirect subtle energy of The Moon. Due to the historical associations and symbolisation of The Sun with masculinity and The Moon with femininity we designate these alignments as either being ‘male’ or ‘female’ alignments accordingly. We interchangeable refer to people as being ‘sun-aligned’ or ‘male-aligned’ and similarly with the female alignment. of stones across the hillside, but nevertheless we noted it for future visits.

Busy Beltane at the Circle

Kal was soon to disappear as we reached the main circle. He had taken an interest in the outlying people and stones, probably because the main circle was populated with several groups of people all engaged in their own Beltane work. I had work to do too. I wanted to connect with the Genius LociGenius Loci means 'spirit of the place' and refers to the geological/gaian spirit of place. It is transfixed to a place – being an embodiment of the collective intelligence of the place. of the place, as I had done previously, and to see whether I could get information about the Hawk of May quest.

I went into the centre of the circle (which I usually avoid, but on this day it seemed charged with potential, whereas it is usually quite confusing and difficult to work with). I stood there and cleansed myself of my worldy energies. Soon I was off towards one of the stones in the southern edge. Kal had been sat at one of those stones too, but now he wandered off in search of something interesting to do. I was trying not to use my rods, but instead to feel for where I should be. I felt one stone in particular was the right one to be at, so I sat there being blasted in one ear by the strong wind.

The stunning setting of the Druid's Circle

This southern stone, not one of the ‘feature’ stones of the circle by any means, I felt had a connection with the Genius LociGenius Loci means 'spirit of the place' and refers to the geological/gaian spirit of place. It is transfixed to a place – being an embodiment of the collective intelligence of the place.. I went into a trance and my mind wandered up and down, to the sky and into the earth, then back to the circle. When I connected it to the Genius LociGenius Loci means 'spirit of the place' and refers to the geological/gaian spirit of place. It is transfixed to a place – being an embodiment of the collective intelligence of the place.’s spirit then things began to occur. It was difficult at first to hear anything because I was trying to listen over the top of the howling wind. As soon as I made the wind the backing music to the trance then the low distant voice of the spirit of this circle emerged to speak. I made my now customary offering of emotion and information, offering love, gratitude and a download of my recent druidic events in return for the information I might receive. Once I had donated this gift then the gift was reciprocated, and soon I learned some things about my quest.

I was taken into the air, flying like a hawk above the scenery. I knew I was in a hawk’s form because I could switch my perception between two modes – an aerial view where I could see for miles around in all directions, or I could focus on one spot and zoom right into that place in minute detail. I practised this way of seeing for a few minutes until I grew comfortable with how it worked. I wasn’t exactly sure whether I was seeing a real place, or a concept of a place because it was hard to recognise the landscape with these two new ways of seeing. Either way, I went with it, and began to ask my question to the spirit of place.

1. Is this way of seeing the end point of my quest? – NO, this is a gift for you to learn from.
2. Should I been seeking a real or a metaphorical hawk? – BOTH. You should find the hawk that is really in the landscape.
3. In the landscape? Is this a terrestrial landscape figure I should find? – YES.
4. Where can I find the hawk? – CLOSE TO HOME.
5. How will I be able to begin to identify the hawk? It seems like an impossible task! – FIND A HOLY WELL. This will be your starting point.

The connection faded. Either I was weakening energetically, or the information was dwindling. The connection faded and I returned to normal waking consciousness and found myself back in the circle with all the other people and the howling wind. I had almost forgotten about them for however long I had been away! Now the wind made itself known again and I wrapped myself up against its cool penetrating fingers as they pulled my hair around into stupid shapes.

This new dimension to the quest made it more exciting. It was just like something out of “The Secret Land” that I had finished reading some weeks before, where terrestrial landscape figures were found by scouring old maps. Now I had my own local quest to find a hawk in the lands close to my home. I couldn’t wait to start searching, but first I had to search for Kal, and to thank the spirit of this marvellous circle for again providing me with the state of mind where I could explore this quest in more detail. Despite, or perhaps because of the sense-blocking weather conditions, yet again I had come away from the Druid’s Circle one step closer to achieving my goal.

Gwas – Hunting the Hawk of May

The Carlanstown Spring

Cleaning up Carlanstown Spring

Gwas.

Having just returned from a visit to Glastonbury with Kal (more about that very soon) I wanted to do something for the Summer Solstice and to keep it local. Where better, then, for me to go than to our local holy well – Plegmund’s Well in the little hamlet of Plemstall which adjoins the larger village of Mickle Trafford in Cheshire.

I had visited Plegmund’s Well earlier in the year on what was something of an uneventful excursion (hence no post), but now there was a good reason to go again because at this time of the year a local committee have revived the ancient ceremony of well-dressing. On my previous visit I had tested the energies of the well. They were weak to the point of non-existence, and the only energy that I could find was that left by people’s devotions (i.e. intentions of good-will, or adoring energy). No earth energy at all, which was unusual for a well, as running water, especially primal water that has passed through rock and minerals is usually quite energetically active. Here, there was none of that, although a set of iron railings prevented me from seeing inside the well itself (iron again! are people insane? iron at a sacred site nullifies energy!).

Who the smeg was Plegmund?

So, if this is Plegmund’s Well, who was Plegmund? Well, it turns out he was quite the scholar in the time of King Alfred. Here’s what the interweb has to say about the fellow:

“He was of Mercian descent and is believed to have lived as a hermit on what was at that time an island which became known as Plegmundeshamm or “The Isle of Chester” at Plemstall in Cheshire. He would have been affiliated to a monastic community either at nearby Chester or near the site of the current church of St Peter, Plemstall.” (source: Wikipedia)

The well dressing ceremony took place on Sunday 20th June, but the panels of creatively decorated flowers stays in place for the Solstice Day too. M and I went down to the church of St.Peter’s that was the original island that Plegmund lived on. There we found that we were fortuitously in time for a bit of tea and cake. As a huge cake lover I was particularly pleased.

We bumped into a friend of ours – a lady who was the last person to have been baptised in the waters of the well. That had been a tradition for all the children of the area for as long as anyone could recall. We chatted about the well-dressing ceremony, got a bit more background history, then went off to experience the well itself.

The Dressed Well

Britannia - emblem of The Lady in Britain

The lady depicted in the floral decorations around the well was Britannia – a mother goddess, a genius loca of the British Isles, and a personification of the nation. Britannia is the kind of emblem that has such modern connotations of nationalism, and yet has been a depiction of the Mother Goddess (The Lady) for so long that she inhabits the corners of the mind of every denizen of these isles, whether they realise it or not.

What I did do was to create a posy of wild flowers after asking permission from the local plants, and threw it into the well dedicating it to The Lady. You’ll see why I did that dedication when I reveal my Glastonbury experience soon.

No water flows through the well now since the nearby Shell plant lowered the water table of everywhere nearby when they extracted all the local water for their own purposes. This probably accounts for the lack of earth energy at this sacred site. That makes the ceremony of well dressing in this case is now just an echo, a memory of what its purpose once was, and a way of bringing local people together – a positive aspect and worthy for sure.

Britannia composed of seashells and flowers

Happy Solstice to all you druidic and dowsing people out there. May you keep alive, nay found your own local tradition to celebrate flow of the seasons.

Gwas.

The concept of hydrotherapy, i.e. healing with water, goes back such a long way into the past that it is probably safest to assume that humans have always used water to effect cures. If you try to read about the origins of water healing you will undoubtedly be told to start with the Roman civilisation. This is clearly based solely upon archaeological evidence to substantiate the idea that a culture systematically embraced an idea. Let it suffice to say that Holy Wells were sacred before they were holy to Christians, and sacred springs have been venerated since before written record of any form. Bathing in sacred springs is not a new concept!

That water has healing properties seems to be something that is generally recognised in the modern ‘alternative’ health arena and seems to be a slow revival of something very popular during the Victorian era. Quotes like this are typical of the modern perspective and marketing slant:

“There is no drug on the market that can rival the number of beneficial physiological effects that water is capable of producing, and it is widely available (unless you happen to be in a desert) and cheap. In fact, there are no substances known to man that possess as many remedial and health-promoting qualities as water. Its therapeutic qualities include sedative, antipyretic (reducing body temperature, anodyne (analgesic,), anticonvulsant, astringent, tonic, anaesthetic, and derivative.”  Source: Internet Health Library

However, this post is about one particular aspect of the healing powers of water that I can find only scant reference to, more in myth than in fact and that concept is that flowing tumultuous water has inherent healing qualities for human beings. When you think about it, it is probably something that you always felt would be true but have never vocalised or integrated that intuition. Neither had I until recently, then an experiment in following intuition opened my eyes to the qualities of water. I suppose the idea of healing water had been revived in my mind by my stay in a German spa town recently.

I remember being told in the Scouts that if you were going to drink from mountain streams you should always seek out a place where the water was enlivened and agitated by rocks: drink from the white water, not a still pool, was always the advice. This advice must have stayed with me always. So, perhaps the concept of water in tumult being beneficial was already embedded in me. 

 Pistyll Rhaeadr is the largest waterfall in Wales. I have posted about this waterfall and its beautiful surroundings before, but this visit turned out to be a special occasion. It was a lovely summer’s day and I decided to take M along with me so that she could see what all the fuss was about. She was not up walking much because two days earlier she had been on a long walk, trying out her new “blister proof” walking socks in preparation for walking the Sandstone Trail in Cheshire. Her sixteen-mile walk had left her with horrific ‘burns’, or some kind of reaction to the lining of the walking socks and she was covered in very sore rashes that spread from her ankles across her feet. She wanted to come long, but she was not keen to walk at all it was that painful to her. I assured her it was worth it.

We had some lunch  at the lovely and friendly café at the foot of the falls. We felt totally relaxed from the tortuous drive to get there by the time we had finished – the sound of the waterfall, the flowing waters, the sleeping cat on the table with us…all lovely. I persuaded M to accompany me on a walk up the waterfall to the hooded rock at the head of the falls, with its limpid pools and soothing sounds. She agreed, but complained every two minutes about her feet! I hoped that the end result might quieten her down a little. After a steep climb up the path we arrived at the head of the falls where there must have been around twenty people milling about.

The water of the Afon Disgynfa river that forms the waterfall seem to me to be chalybeate, i.e. full of iron mineral content – certainly the waters contain a dark brown tinge to them. Whether it was this characteristic that set off the idea in my head that the waters would have healing properties I can’t say, but the idea came to me that they would be of benefit to M and her stinging feet.

I got my dowsing rods out and asked whether M’s rash-ridden stinging feet could be healed – YES. Where should she sit to be healed? I followed the rods to a narrow flat rock very near to the edge of the falls, at a point where one could dangle one’s feet in the running and bubbling waters. OK – we’ll do it! M sat there for about five minutes admiring the view, feet immersed in the cold running and churning water.

When M had finished I wanted to try it too – just to see what it felt like. After five minutes each of enjoyment and cold numb feet we dried our feet and then made our way back down the steep slope to the car. On the way up M had complained at almost every bend in the path. Now, not a peep! And that was literally miraculous! Two days of constant complaining had been cured in a few minutes of ‘treatment’ by the flowing waterfall. The rash looked visibly reduced, and all tightness and soreness had gone away. If you have problems with your feet, even if only from the climb up Pistyll Rhaeadr, I recommend this particular therapy – get your shoes and socks off!

Gwas.

Following an alternative healing path.